I wish I had a nickel for every time someone came to my yard, admired my plants and then said since I was a "professional" I must be using some secret fertilizer on my plants to make them look so nice. Are they surprised when I explained I buy what is cheapest at the time! K-grow from K-mart for a liquid fertilizer. High in Urea so it takes about two weeks before you see any reaction by the plant. I mention this because their are no "miracle fertilizers". I am not buying tomato grow, rose grow ect for each plant i fertilize. Yes I agree some plants are more heavy nitrogen feeders than others. Sometimes the issue is the fertility of the soil you have. I have used 10-10-10 on my tree fruits with good results. I have used lawn fertilizer (28-0-16) and had good results too, just use at a much lower rate as higher in nitrogen. My soils are fine on phosphorus and we have a phosphorus ban here anyway unless it is a new planting. I did not spring for a soil test but let the trees tell me the problem. I strive for 18"-24" of new growth on young fruit trees. If I don't get it, then next year I fertilize. Too much growth, then cut back or eliminate fertilizing the following year. I fertilize all my young fruit trees with a granular fertilizer just after leaf out by broadcasting it around the drip-line of the tree. My soil must be very low in nitrogen as imust apply a lite application around old established trees too or their foliage turns yellow-green by mid-June. I fertilize the old trees at about half the rate I use on the young ones so I do not promote a lot of growth but have good leaf color. I know this is not scientific but it has worked for me and I am happy with the results. If I was professionally growing fruit for a living, I would gladly pay for a soil test as well worth the cost and not worth the risk of going without it.

Thanks Glenda ! jasdip it is one that was posted here on the recipes area, my husband loves it and has asked for it a few times now. I do a few changes to make it more to our liking. sausage rice casserole 1 pound Breakfast Sausage 1 6-ounce box Uncle Ben's long-grain and wild rice 2 small onions, chopped 1 4-ounce can mushroom pieces 1 10.75-ounce can condensed cream of mushroom soup 4 tablespoons butter Steps Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Cook rice according to package directions. In a heavy skillet over medium heat, cook sausage and onion until thoroughly done, about 4-5 minutes. Drain. Combine all ingredients except butter and pour into casserole dish. Dot top with butter. Bake until bubbly, about 25 minutes. I also add some diced bell pepper and celery to this recipe and add it to the cooking sausage to get it tender, I also used fresh mushrooms and cooked them with the sausage. I use less butter on top. I cooked mine in the oven longer too about 35-40 mins. The sausage I use is Tennessee Pride mild. I add a bit of seasonings to mine, some Tony's and some garlic salt. I used cream of onion soup this last time. There are never any leftovers once my husband gets hold of it. LOL

I made a wonderful beef stew late last night so right now I am reheating a bowl of it for a late supper. My brother Paul was over today so I sent him home with 2 large containers of stew. I was going to just make a small amount but it is just as easy to make a large amount and share it. Perfect thing to eat on a chilly night. Anne

I had no earthly idea what I wanted for dinner last night so I took a frozen chicken burger patty out of the freezer and made that on a bun. Sauteed mushrooms and peppers and fried potatoes to go with it. Saturday was the dance!!! I met my friend and her friends at the venue. The place was full so I just stood at the entrance until she saw me :-) I immediately was welcomed into the fray (9 of us at a round table. I don't drink and drive (I drink seldom anyway, except wine with my meals on weekends, that's my treat). So I drank ginger-ale. I was dancing with the 3 gentlemen thru the night. One asked me what I thought of so-and-so. I said he's very nice. This fellow said that the consensus by others at the table is that we'd be a good fit. I was flattered and laughed as I sure didn't want any of them to think I'd chase him. He is very nice, and has the look I like. He and I had a number of dances, and the final dance, It was encouraging when he just grabbed my hand and said let's go; and we went on to the dance floor. The next dance we're all going to is April 9, country music. ( I love country, he likes Led Zeppelin) lol. We were talking about wearing cowboy hats, and he said he has one and he has another that I can wear :-) So...we shall see.